Obviously these polls are bollocks until JD/NO win them, and according to todays sun (no, i didn't buy it) www.musicmagpie.co.uk has voted UP the best ever iconic album cover.
http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30100-1308084,00.html
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UP is best ever cover
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Music fans have voted Joy Division's Unknown Pleasures as the most iconic album cover of all time.
Unknown Pleasures The black and white pulses design by artist Peter Saville topped a poll of British bands that included the Beatles, Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd.
The cover of Joy Division's debut album, released on the late Tony Wilson's Manchester-based Factory label in 1979, represents 100 pulses from a collapsing star.
The image was found in the Cambridge Encyclopaedia of Astronomy by the band's guitarist Bernard Sumner.
Bass player Peter Hook told the Daily Mirror: "We weren't interested in being on the cover - we wanted to do things in a different way."
Unknown Pleasures took the top spot over fellow Manchester band The Stone Roses for their 1989 eponymous debut.
The Beatles' Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band from 1967 came in third.
Others in the top 10 include The Smiths Meat Is Murder and Led Zeppelin's Houses of the Holy.
Aside from Unknown Pleasures, Saville also designed album and single covers for a host of Factory label artists, including James and New Order.
Joy Division disbanded in 1980 after singer Ian Curtis's suicide but have been credited as one of the most influential UK groups of the past 30 years.
Led Zep's House of the HolyThe poll was conducted by budget music retail site MusicMagpie.co.uk.
The firm's boss Steve Oliver said: "It's so much more stylish for people to show off their cool CDs rather than as digital downloads."
Top 10 Most Iconic Covers:
- Joy Division - Unknown Pleasures
- The Stone Roses - The Stone Roses
- The Beatles - Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
- The Smiths - Meat is Murder
- Led Zeppelin - Houses of the Holy
- The Beatles - Abbey Road
- Pink Floyd - The Dark Side of the Moon
- David Bowie - The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust
- Paul Weller - Stanley Road
- Sex Pistols - Never Mind the B*****ks
thought the stones sticky fingers would have got a mention, otherwise sound shout.
candidate
I quite liked alot of the 4AD artists' sleeves, designed by 23 Envelope.
Also, a couple of the House Of Love sleeves - their first album and the 12" original of 'Shine On'.
Some good sleeves in that selection, I would have thought that 'Dark Side Of The Moon' would have been higher - most people know the image, even if they don't know the album.
Pretty spot on all those. Am sure the majority of those are instantly recognisable to most people.
Surprised by the Bowie choice though, that's the only one I couldn't immediately picture. I'd have thought 'Aladdin Sane' was infinitely more iconic?
el jarvo wrote" couldt picture ziggy"
apart from low and heroes this is one thats burnt onto the memory plate,, only just got a sane to mind ,even though its in me collection,
let me put my arms around you
I own STANLEY ROAD but am a bit surprised that it is mentioned here.Owning of all the BOWIE albums too but don't rate ZIGGY as much as some of the others.My favorites change with time though but makes interesting reading.
79 order wrote:
el jarvo wrote" couldt picture ziggy"
apart from low and heroes this is one thats burnt onto the memory plate,, only just got a sane to mind ,even though its in me collection,
let me put my arms around you
Really, I'm surprised - I'd have thought this was immediately recognisable -
And this one wasn't, really. Am gobsmacked it's made the top 10 of most 'iconic' covers to be honest.
This one's got his best haircut though! 
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Where are "Velvet Underground and Nico" and "Discipline" (King Crimson)? The last one was designed by Peter Saville too...
So how was this survey conducted? Did people write in their covers or was it a list... and everyone voted for thier favorite band? Not sure as a couple of those qualify as iconic... maybe they misunderstood and thought it said ironic???
Very nice, but if you conducted a poll in the street I suspect the results would show that more people recognised all the other 'iconic' covers (apart from maybe the Led Zep one) before UP.
It's still the best one, mind.
Canuck21 wrote: I personally think that the The Stone Roses sleeve is quite ugly. I don't get it.
Ugly or not though, it's iconic. Everyone knows that sleeve!
El Jarvo wrote:
Canuck21 wrote: I personally think that the The Stone Roses sleeve is quite ugly. I don't get it.
Ugly or not though, it's iconic. Everyone knows that sleeve!
Maybe in Breetann, but I had to google that sleeve to remember what it was, and even then I just barely remember it.... not iconic over here...
EdelBrock wrote:
El Jarvo wrote:
Canuck21 wrote: I personally think that the The Stone Roses sleeve is quite ugly. I don't get it.
Ugly or not though, it's iconic. Everyone knows that sleeve!
Maybe in Breetann, but I had to google that sleeve to remember what it was, and even then I just barely remember it.... not iconic over here...
jackson pollack's "art" is more iconic here.
thinking about this a bit more i'd definitely have had screamadelica & london calling in there (even if that did copy an elvis sleeve)
EdelBrock wrote:
El Jarvo wrote:
Canuck21 wrote: I personally think that the The Stone Roses sleeve is quite ugly. I don't get it.
Ugly or not though, it's iconic. Everyone knows that sleeve!
Maybe in Breetann, but I had to google that sleeve to remember what it was, and even then I just barely remember it.... not iconic over here...
Same here. I knew it must be some Pollock-like shit but still can't really embrace the image of it in my head. And this is teh first time I even see the Ziggy Studust cover. As has been above, the VU-Warhol one should be in this great top 10.
El Jarvo wrote:
79 order wrote:
el jarvo wrote" couldt picture ziggy"
apart from low and heroes this is one thats burnt onto the memory plate,, only just got a sane to mind ,even though its in me collection,
let me put my arms around you
Really, I'm surprised - I'd have thought this was immediately recognisable -
And this one wasn't, really. Am gobsmacked it's made the top 10 of most 'iconic' covers to be honest.
This one's got his best haircut though!
have to agree with you there, ziggy is his most famous album but i dont think the average man in the street would recognise the cover so easily, as for the low cover, best haircut and best jacket ever.also always thought heroes had a great sleeve.
never saw the sleeve but my mate once saw a val doonican (old irish dude with a twinkle in his eye and a rocking chair, he was sat on the rocking chair, it wasnt also in his eye you understand) who did a covers album of rock songs entitled val doonican rocks...but gently. i have been trying to track it down for years.
I don't recall ever even seeing that Peter Weller cover before... and still doesn't make much of an impression on me.
another few for consideration off the top of my head stones sticky fingers human league dare suicide suicide dylan free wheeling the beatles "white album" lou reed transformer bucks fizz land of make believe
0_o wrote: I don't recall ever even seeing that Peter Weller cover before... and still doesn't make much of an impression on me.
peter weller? he any good?
clump wrote:
0_o wrote: I don't recall ever even seeing that Peter Weller cover before... and still doesn't make much of an impression on me.
peter weller? he any good?
Peter was great in Robocop!
Paul, not so much.
americans just don't understand The Jam I guess...
0_o wrote:
clump wrote:
0_o wrote: I don't recall ever even seeing that Peter Weller cover before... and still doesn't make much of an impression on me.
peter weller? he any good?
Peter was great in Robocop!
Paul, not so much.
americans just don't understand The Jam I guess...
or just dont understand,full stop.
